Protector
by Twinx214
Summary: After an accident lands Rouge in the hospital, Knuckles must protect her when her attacker comes back to finish the job. KnuxRouge. COMPLETED!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki is property of me. Thank you!

This is my first attempt at a KnuxRouge fan fic. Actually, it's my first attempt at a fic period. So please, no flaming! This takes place during my comic series Sonic Chaos Adventure. If you're interested in checking it out (which I highly recommend that you do!), visit my author page for the link. Now, enjoy!

Protector

The halls of Station Square Hospital were bustling with doctors and patients rushing from one room to the next. But in one small hallway, one small hospital room, everything was perfectly still. Everything was silent aside from the beeping of the heart monitor. The only two people in the room were the patient, a white bat suffering from a bullet wound, and the echidna who brought her in.

"…How could this happen…?"

Knuckles had been asking himself that question ever since he got to the hospital. "This had nothing to do with her…why did she get involved? Why did I just stand there and let her get hurt? Why…why did I let this happen?" He rubbed his forehead, as if he were trying to erase the awful scene from his memory.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He wearily lifted his head towards the door to see a very concerned white mouse looking back at him.

"…Kid got here quick…" Knuckles muttered to himself as he stepped out of the room to greet the mouse girl. "Hey Aki…"

"I came as soon as I heard." Aki said, worry written all over her face. "…How is she?"

"Thankfully, the bullet missed any vital organs. She passed out from the shock. Doc said that she'd make a full recovery."

"Oh, that's good!" Aki breathed a sigh of relief. "I was afraid something awful happened!"

"…Nothing would've happened if I'd have been more careful …" Knuckles muttered darkly. His fists were clenched so tightly that they were trembling. "If I had just…" his voice quivered. "If I…"

"Knuckles…" Aki gently placed her tiny hands around Knuckles' huge fist with a concerned look on her face. She had never seen Knuckles like this before. Usually, he was so cool and stern and focused. Now seeing him nearly on the verge on tears, it was hard for her.

"Knuckles…why don't you tell me what happened?"

A/N: Wow, that's a short chapter…; I promise the other chapters won't be as short. Next time we'll find out what happens to Rouge, but until then, R&R!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki is property of me.

Thank you everyone for your kind reviews! I don't think I'm that good of a writer, so the fact that people like my story is very reassuring. Please continue to review, it makes me very happy! By the way, this entire chapter is one big flashback, just so no one will get confused.

Also, due to some language in this chapter, I'm bumping this story up to Teen. Just to be safe…now, here's Chapter 2!

Protector-Chapter 2

"(sigh)…Stupid Sonic…"

Knuckles laid on the floor of the temple, staring up at the cloudless blue sky of Angel Island. Sonic and his friends hadn't visited the island since they were too busy fighting off Eggman's E-Cyborgs. And honestly, Knuckles was very jealous.

"I'm up here guarding the emerald, and he's down there having a brawl. How come he gets to have all the fun?" he muttered to himself. "Heh…if it were me down there…" Knuckles jumped up and clenched his fists, ready to fight. "I'd knock out each and every one of them myself!" he shouted as he punched a nearby pillar into rubble.

As the dust settled, Knuckles looked over at the Master Emerald. Even though he wanted to fight and wanted to help his friends, he knew he had no choice but to remain on the island. "This sucks…" Knuckles slumped back down on the floor with a heavy sigh. "I wish I could have some of the action for once…instead of sitting around doing nothing…"

"Sounds like that Emerald's more trouble than it's worth…"

"I guess sometimes…"

"I'll gladly take it off your hands for you…" Knuckles' eyes widened as he heard the click of a gun behind him. Without a second thought, he grabbed the intruder's arm, hurled him over his shoulder and slammed him into the ground with a thud. Knuckles quickly got into a fighting stance, ready to attack, until he saw who the intruder was…

"…Fang!"

"Long time, no see Knuckles…" The purple weasel smirked as he got up off the ground. He dusted himself off and adjusted his hat, then looked back at the stunned guardian. "How long's it been since we last saw each other, huh?"

"Not long enough…" the echidna growled, barring his teeth. "Why are you on MY island?"

"For the Master Emerald, of course. Why else do you think I'd waste my time with this dump of an island?" Fang eyed the giant emerald. "I'm sure a nice rock like that would fetch a handsome price on the Black Market!"

"And you think I'm just gonna let you take it?" Knuckles snarled at the bounty hunter. Suddenly, he charged forward with a yell, smashing his fist into Fang's snout. The weasel flew backwards several feet, but quickly landed on his feet and countered with a roundhouse kick, taking the guardian by surprise and knocking him down the stairs to the ground below.

While Knuckles attempted to get up, Fang dashed down the stairs, ready to deliver another blow. But Knuckles quickly rolled out of the way and got to his feet behind Fang. He grabbed the weasel's bent tail and swung him around, flinging him into a nearby tree.

"Had enough, weasel?" Knuckles glared as the weasel shakily got back up to his feet. Fang wiped away the bit of blood that came from his mouth, and grinned in response. "I'm just getting started…"

The two continued to fight, unaware that they were being watched by another "intruder…"

"Who'd have thought Knucklehead was so strong…" Rouge thought to herself as she viewed the fight from her hiding spot atop one of the pillar that hadn't already been smashed by the fight. "Was he holding back when he fought me all those times?" She continued to watch the two combatants, silently rooting for Knuckles.

The red echidna delivered another hard punch to Fang's chin, knocking him to the ground. As the weasel struggled to get back up, Knuckles glared down at him, a superior smirk on his face. "Learned your lesson, Mr. Big Shot Bounty Hunter?" he grinned. "No one's touching the Master Emerald as long as I'm around!"

Fang still stayed hunched over on the ground, his mind racing. "Damn Knuckles…forgot how strong he was…making a fool outta me like that…" He dug his fingers into the dirt and smirked. "But no damn echidna's gonna stop me from getting my paws on that rock…"

Thinking quickly, Fang grabbed the dirt and threw it in Knuckles' eyes, blinding him long enough for the crafty weasel to get back on his feet. And with one swift kick to the gut, Knuckles was down on the ground.

"Now here's a lesson for you, Knuckles." Fang laughed, twirling his gun around his finger as he watched the echidna struggled to get up. "No one stops me from getting what I want." Fang stop twirling his gun and aimed it right at Knuckles' head. He glared darkly at his fallen opponent. "No one…"

He pulled the trigger.

But it wasn't Knuckles who lay bleeding on the ground.

It was Rouge.

Just mere moments before Fang pulled the trigger, Rouge flew out of her hiding place and shoved Knuckles out of the way. She got him out of harm's way just in time, but wasn't fast enough to save herself.

All was silent for a moment as Knuckles tried to process what just happened. "Did that batgirl…Rouge…did she just…save me?" Knuckles had no idea why she was even on the island, much less why she took a bullet for him. "Rouge…why did you…?"

"Stupid bitch…" a voice snarled. Knuckles snapped his head up to see Fang, still holding the gun, glowering at the bat with disgust. "Oh well…her fault for getting in my way…"

"…What did you call her…?" Knuckles said, his voice quivering. Fang turned to see the echidna back on his feet, his body trembling with rage, eyes burning with anger. "What did you just call her!"

But Fang didn't get a chance to answer Knuckles' question. With a great yell, he struck Fang in the face, knocking him through the forest, off the edge of Angel Island and crashing down into the ocean below.

Knuckles just stood there, letting his body stop shaking before he rushed over to where Rouge was. "Rouge…Rouge!" Knuckles knelt next to, gently shaking her by the shoulder. "Rouge! Are you all right? Please, say something!" But Rouge didn't say a word. Knuckles glanced down at her side, where blood was flowing from the bullet wound. She needed medical help, fast.

"Hang on, Rouge…" Knuckles carefully picked the wounded bat up in his arms. Wasting no time, he took off from the island and started gliding towards the mainland.

A:N: Well, I promised the 2nd chapter would be longer. Hope you guys enjoyed Fang's appearance in the story! This was a bit tough to write, especially trying to make the fight scene exciting. Next time, we switch back to the present time as Aki tried to help Knuckles sort out his feelings for Rouge. Until next time, R&R!

- Shameless Plug #1: Don't know what E-Cyborgs are? They're the main baddies in my fan comic, Sonic Chaos Adventure, as well as most of my stories. Like I said, this story takes place during my comic series. Visit my author's page for the link to the Sonic Chaos Adventure comic to find out more about the E-Cyborgs!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki is property of me.

Thanks again for all of your reviews everyone! As for some of your comments:

**Disney Villain**- I did make Fang pretty heartless, huh? But don't worry; he'll get what's coming to him…

**SonicsRose** – Not to worry. Rouge'll make a full recovery. Though that's not to say there won't be a few "complications…" (hint, hint…)

With that, here's Chapter 3!

Protector-Chapter 3

"…I had no idea…"

Back at the hospital, Knuckles had just finished telling Aki what had happened over the last few hours. "Fang…that horrible weasel…" the mouse clenched her fists together. "I hope that fall broke every bone in his body!"

"One can only hope…" Knuckles muttered in response.

"So…you've been here ever since then?"

"Pretty much?"

"How long is that?"

"Umm…she got out of surgery about an hour ago…I guess 2, maybe 3 hours I've been here."

Aki's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow…I never though you'd leave the Master Emerald unguarded for so long…"

"Right now…" Knuckles said, looking over at Rouge's hospital room. "I think her life is a little more important than the Emerald."

Now Aki was really surprised. The Master Emerald was Knuckles' life. He lived to protect that emerald; it was his destiny, his purpose. Now here he was saying that something was more important than the Emerald, something more important than his own life. And it just happened to be the life of the so-called batgirl that he couldn't stand.

"Knuckles…you really do like Rouge, don't you?"

"Eh?" Knuckles' head shot up instantly, face as red as his dreadlocks.

"I knew it!" Aki exclaimed excitedly, jumping out of her seat. "You DO like her! You did such a good job of hiding it, but the truth is you're crazy about her, aren't you? That's so sweet!"

Before Aki could continue gushing over Knuckles' "crush," the echidna pinned her to the wall and shouted, "IF YOU TELL ANYONE, I'LL KILL YOU! GOT IT?"

"Kn…Knuckles…calm down!" Aki squeaked, trying to squirm out of Knuckles' grasp. "D…don't say something like that in a hospital!"

Knuckles let go after a few seconds and slumped back down in the chair, his face redder than before.

Aki adjusted her newsboy hat and said sheepishly, "I…guess I got carried away…but there's no denying you like her!"

Knuckles said nothing.

"That's why you're still here, isn't it? You're waiting for her to wake up so you can tell her how you feel!"

"Look you…" Knuckles growled. "What makes you think I'd do something stupid like that?"

"Well…besides the fact that you almost straggled me and threatened to kill me…" Aki muttered under her breath, sweatdropping a bit. Aki stepped up to Knuckles and put her hand on his shoulder, smiling softly. "The fact that you're here right now instead of on Angel Island is proof enough."

Knuckles looked up at the smiling mouse. Maybe she had a point. If he really didn't care, he would've left as soon as she was in the hospital. So, why did he stick around? Was it possible that he, Knuckles, the guardian of the Master Emerald, actually had feelings for that jewel thief? He had to admit, Aki was pretty amazing. Even if she looked like a 12-year-old.

"I'm gonna go get a soda!" she proclaimed, grinning. "You want me to get you one too?"

"…Yeah. Grape." He replied. Aki nodded and started to head over to the vending machines, until…

"Aki!"

Aki turned back to Knuckles, still slumped down in his chair. "Hey…Promise you won't tell Sonic about this. With all the times I teased him about Amy; if he finds out about this, he'll have a field day with it…"

Aki just stared at Knuckles for a moment, then smiled and replied, "Of course. Your secret's safe with me."

"…Thanks."

It was getting dark outside, and the front desk had slowed down. The nurse at the front, thankful for the break, was flipping through a magazine. Suddenly,

A gruff voice interrupted her. "I'm here to see a patient."

The nurse looked up to see a man wearing a hat and a long coat carrying a bouquet of flowers. She sighed and replied half-heartedly, "I'm sorry sir; visiting hours are over for the day. Come back tomorrow between 1 and 5 PM."

"Oh, I'm not here to visit." The man replied. He reached into the bouquet of flowers and pulled out a gun, aimed right at the nurse's head. The nurse started to scream, but the man quickly clamped his hand over her mouth. "I know that a white batgirl was brought to this clinic a few hours ago. You're gonna tell me where she is."

The nurse nodded fearfully and quickly turned to the computer, checking the records with the gun still pointed at her. "Y…yes sir…" the nurse's voice trembled. "A…white bat…female…w…was brought in…about 3 hours ago…with a bullet wound…Room 502…"

"Who brought her in?"

"I…I can't remember…"

"Is that right?" The man pressed the gun against the nurse's head. "Try really hard…"

"It…it was a red guy!" The nurse exclaimed, nearly in tears. "He had dreadlocks! And huge gloves with spikes!"

"Damn echidna…" The man growled. He put the gun in the holster under his coat and walked off, his long purple tail dragging behind him.

A/N: Oh dear, it's not over yet! Who could this mysterious man be (as if you didn't already know…) Next time, Knuckles must protect Rouge from this guy, but who's going to protect Knuckles? Until next time, R&R!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki is property of me.

Yikes! The reviews for this story nearly doubled overnight! I'm so happy:) Please keep those reviews coming! And to address a few of them…

**Disney Villain**- Hang in there, Round 2's coming up soon…

**Kal0-and-Summer** – Yeah, I'm new. I joined about a week ago. I've been writing stories for a couple of years, but I never posted them until now.

**InfinitiveEvil101**- Knuckles does a pretty good job of hiding his feelings, doesn't he?

Also, people's thoughts are in italics, just to let you know. And now, by popular request, Chapter 4!

**Protector-Chapter 4**

"What's taking Aki so long with those sodas…?" Knuckles grumbled impatiently. He looked down the hall where Aki had run off to, then back to Rouge's room, where the bat was sleeping peacefully.

_"You really do like Rouge, don't you?"_

Aki's words kept running through Knuckles' mind. He frowned, trying to sort out the feelings he had. _"It's like that time on the ARK…" _he thought to himself. He had felt the same way when he saved her from falling into the pit. At that moment, Rouge's life was more important than the Master Emerald, even though he said he was saving the emerald shards.

_"That's why you're still here, isn't it? You're waiting for her to wake up so you can tell her how you feel!"_

"…not a bad idea…." Knuckles muttered as he slumped back in his chair, allowing himself a few minutes of rest.

But the moment Knuckles let his guard down was just the moment "he" was waiting for…

_"Damn echidna's made a fool outta me for the last time…"_ the man in the long coat growled as he made his way down the hall, gun cocked and loaded. He stopped right in front of the sleeping echidna and aimed the gun point blank at his head. "Like I said before…" he snarled, his finger tight around the trigger. "No one stops me from getting what I want…"

"CHAOS BOLT!" From out of nowhere, a blue blot of light shot across the hall and struck the man, knocking him to the ground.

"Zzz…huh! What! Who's there?" Knuckles instantly jumped out of his seat, fists clenched.

"Knuckles! Are you OK?" Knuckles turned to Aki, standing at the end of the hall, her hand still glowing blue from Chaos Bolt.

Knuckles glared down at his attacker, whose coat was in shreds and his hat halfway down the hall, revealing his identity.

"Fang!"

"Missed me?" Fang smirked, getting back on his feet. "Oh…I took a beating all right…but it'll take more than that to keep me down…"

"You're the one who hurt Rouge, aren't you?" Aki demanded, joining Knuckles' side.

"Thanks to that dumb bat, I missed my chance at the Master Emerald." Fang explained. "I'm gonna make sure she's not gonna get in my way again…"

"Like hell you will!" Knuckles shouted, ready to clobber him, until Aki jumped in front of him. "Wha…Aki? What are you doing!"

"I'll take care of Fang! You go and protect Rouge!" Aki ordered.

"But…"

"Don't worry about me! You're the only one who can protect her!" Aki grinned. "She saved your tail, now it's your turn!"

"…Watch yourself, kid." Knuckles hurried into Rouge's room.

"Ha! You're gonna stop me?" Fang laughed. "Get out of my way, you little brat!"

Aki said nothing as her whole body began to glow blue, surrounding her with Chaos Energy. She smiled sweetly and replied, "Who's a brat? "

Suddenly, Aki let loose a large wave of Chaos Energy. Fang quickly ducked under the blast and fired three shots from his gun.

"Chaos Barrier!" Aki shielded herself, casting a green circle of Chaos Energy around herself. The bullets bounced off the shield and fell to the ground.

"Uh…er…" Fang was speechless as he stared down at the now useless bullets. He looked up at the mouse girl wide-eyed. "Wh…who the hell are you?"

"A girl who doesn't like to see her friends get hurt!" Aki exclaimed, sending another bolt of energy his way. Fang quickly dived out of the way as the bolt hit a nearby gurney, blowing it to pieces.

When the dust cleared, Fang was nowhere to be seen. Aki looked around, confused. "Wha…where'd he go?"

"Right behind you…"

With a quick strike to her neck, Aki was down on the floor, unconscious. Fang dusted his hands off and smirked, "Nighty-night, brat."

Meanwhile, Knuckles was in Rouge's hospital room, watching the battle from the window. "Damn!" he cursed when Aki fell. _"…You did your best kid…guess it's up to me now…"_ He turned to the sleeping batgirl, completely oblivious to what was going on around her. Knuckles stood next to her and placed a gloved hand on her cheek, "Rouge…I'll protect you this time…I promise…"

He turned to the door, fists clenched, teeth barred, ready to clock Fang in the face just as soon as the door opened…

A/N: And…cliffhanger:P Sorry guys, I seriously didn't want to end it here, but I gotta figure out how to write the next scene…;

By the way, if you're confused about Aki, she can use the powers of the Chaos Emeralds as a weapon. There's more info about Aki on my author's page.

You can probably guess what's gonna happen next; yep, the big fight scene! But until next time, R&R!

Oh yeah, if you guys have any suggestions for fight scenes, let me know. It'll really help!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki is property of me.

Yes, I finally got around to writing this chapter…I'm really sorry it took so long, but I think I've just about figured this fight scene out. Now, without further ado, here is the long-awaited (or not…) Chapter 5!

Protector-Chapter 5

Knuckles turned to the door, fists clenched, teeth barred, ready to clock Fang in the face just as soon as the door opened…

But after a few moments, the door remained shut.

Confused, Knuckles looked out the window of her hospital room. Aki was still unconscious on the ground, but Fang was nowhere to be seen.

_"What the…where'd that weasel slink off to?"_ he wondered as he looked down the halls for any sign of Fang. "This doesn't make sense…" he wondered aloud. "He wouldn't just leave without making some kind of move on either me or Rouge…"

"…Bingo."

Knuckles whirled around to see the shifty weasel right behind him, standing next to Rouge's bed.

"Son of a…how'd you get in here?" Knuckles demanded. Fang simply pointed upwards with his gun. Knuckles looked in the direction to see the air vent, the cover completely gone.

"You're right. I ain't leaving here till I get my payback on this broad."

Knuckles started to charge towards him, but screeched to a halt when Fang put the gun up to her head. "Not so fast, hot shot! One more move, and I'll personally make sure she never leaves this hospital!"

The echidna clenched his fists, gritting his teeth. "Damn…" he growled. Seeing that Knuckles wouldn't dare risk Rouge's life, Fang started to put his gun away. But before the echidna could react, the weasel quickly turned the gun on him and fired four times, knocking the echidna into the wall.

But it wasn't bullets that were fired.

When Knuckles got his bearings back, he found that his wrists and anklets were pinned to the wall by 4 metal bands. "The hell is this?" Knuckles exclaimed. He tried to break free, but the bands wouldn't budge.

"Don't bother trying to escape." Fang explained. "Once those bars find something to stick to, there's no breaking free." He smirked, twirling his gun around his index finger. "Nice little gift courtesy of Dr. Eggman."

"Eggman? He still trusts you enough to give you this?"

"I never said he 'gave' them to me." Fang laughed. "I found these little babies while I was sneaking around Eggman's base." Fang stepped in front of Knuckles, staring him dead in the eye. "And now that I know you won't interfere," He held up his gun. "…I'm gonna have a little fun."

Fang flicked a single bullet out of his glove and loaded it into the gun. He spun the barrel around a few times, then twirled the gun and aimed right at Rouge. "Let's just see how lucky your woman is."

"What are you…!"

He pulled the trigger.

Nothing.

"Hmmm…got lucky this time…" Fang muttered as Knuckles strained to break free of his restraints. "Didn't I tell you? You can't escape." Fang twirled his gun around his finger, tossing it behind his back, and catching it on his other finger. "Just sit back and enjoy the show."

_"He's just toying with me!"_ Knuckles realized. _"Dammit! There's no way to break free!"_

Again, Fang pulled the trigger.

Nothing.

"That's twice…" Fang muttered again, twirling his gun.

"If you hurt her…" Knuckles growled. Fang turned to the guardian, boiling with rage. "If you hurt her again…I'll kill you!"

Fang just merely laughed. "You're in no position to be making threats! You couldn't save her last time, and you sure as hell won't save her this time!"

That was the last straw.

Something inside Knuckles snapped and with a great roar, he broke free of his restraints, much to the weasel's horror.

"Wh…wh…what! Th…those restraints were 100 titanium! There's no way…!"

Before Fang could finish, Knuckles grabbed the gun out of his hand. The weasel could only watch as Knuckles crushed the gun with a single fist, the pieces falling to the floor.

"Your luck just ran out, Fang…"

Knuckles smashed his fist into Fang's face, sending the weasel hurtling through the glass window and into the opposite wall, where he fell to the floor with a dull thud.

"Ohhhh…" Aki moaned, rubbing the back of her neck. She had just regained consciousness and now had a throbbing pain in her neck. "Ouch…what happened?"

Her question was soon answered when she saw Fang lying on the ground, unconscious.

"WAAAAAUGH!" Aki shrieked in surprise, scooting back away from the body. "Wh…wh…wha…that…did…wha…!"

"Relax, Aki." came a voice from Rouge's room. Aki turned to see Knuckles, standing by the broken window, a relieved smile on his face. "I got him."

A/N: Whew! It's over! I originally had another idea for this fight scene, but after an old episode of 24, I got this idea.

There's just one more chapter to go...sad, huh? It should be up as early as tomorrow morning, so please check back. Until next time, R&R!

On another note, Happy 15th Birthday to Sonic the Hedgehog! Here's to 15 more years of speediness and then some:)


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Knuckles, Rouge or any of the other official SEGA characters. Aki and Sammy are property of me.

Here it is, the last chapter. I know, I'm sad too. Before I begin, I'd just like to thank everyone for your kind support. This was a huge success for my first fic, and it was your support that made it possible. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Now, please enjoy the final chapter of Protector.

Protector-Chapter 6

A while later, the police came to investigate what had happened. While Aki was explaining to the authorities what happened, Knuckles was back in Rouge's room, making sure she was okay.

_"It's amazing that she slept through that…"_ he mused, an amused look on his face. His face softened as he placed his hand on top of hers. _"Well…here goes nothing…"_

"Rouge…" Knuckles' voice was soft, so he wouldn't wake her. "I don't know if you can hear me right now…but, I just wanted to let you know that Fang won't bother you anymore. The cops took him away for a long time."

He was quiet for a while, trying to calm his nerves for what he really wanted to say. _"Even if she can't hear me…I still have to let her know…"_

"The truth is…" Knuckles paused and he breathed in deeply. "The truth is…when he attacked you…I completely lost it. I…I thought…I didn't know what I would do…if I ever lost you…"

Knuckles looked over at the sleeping bat. He took her hand in both of his, trying to find the right words to say. "Rouge…I…I love you…I love you a lot…You have no idea…so…so that's why I stayed here…so I could tell you…just how I feel…"

He stared at Rouge for a moment. When she was fast asleep like this, without all the make-up, she looked completely different, almost innocent. He smiled and gently stroked her face, leaning in a bit closer. "Rouge…" he whispered, slowly closing the gap between them, his lips just inches away from hers…

"Kn…Knuckles?"

"…!" Knuckles instantly backed away. "R…R…Rouge!"

The white bat slowly sat up, smirking at the blushing echidna. "…What was that you were saying earlier?"

"Huh?" Knuckles exclaimed. Rouge had heard everything! "I…ah…I didn't say anything!" he shouted as he quickly ran out of the room, leaving the bat behind.

Rouge simply chuckled to herself as she laid back down, thinking, _"I love you too, Knuckles…"_

A bit later, Knuckles was outside the hospital, mentally beating himself up for what he did. "Dammit! Why'd she have to wake up? I was doing fine when I thought she couldn't hear what I was saying!" He sighed and slouched down on the steps of the hospital, completely unaware that Rouge wasn't the only one who heard his little confession…

"He was so close…" Aki pouted, resting her chin on her hands.

"And even after all the crap he went through for her, he lost his nerve at the last minute." remarked the purple hedgehog next to her, flicking back the curly quill that fell in front of her face. "Didn't I tell you that would happen?"

"But I thought for sure…"

"Well, the important thing is that Rouge'll be all right. Besides, there is some good that came out of this situation…" the purple hedgehog turned to Aki and rubbed her head. "At least you got Knucklehead to admit his feelings! That's an accomplishment in itself!"

"So, you think they have a chance, Sammy?" Aki looked up at her friend.

"Well…they're both pretty hardheaded…" Sammy muttered. "But I think they'll come around. And we can always give them a little push…" she added, a devious smirk coming to her face.

Aki grinned back, knowing all too well what that smirk meant. "Sammy, what are you planning?"

"Well…Valentine's Day is right around the corner…"

The End

A/N: Whew! It's done! collapses in the chair Protector's finished, but the story's not over yet! I've got a sequel in the works that should be up pretty soon, hopefully a few weeks from now or so…

By the way, the purple hedgehog is Sammy, my 2nd fan character. There's info about her on my author's page if you're curious.

Thanks again to all those who've read and reviewed the story. I'm very grateful for your support. Until next time, R&R, and thanks for reading!


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